Moving Image Screens Trio of Films by James Toback, Beg. Today

Museum of the Moving Image will present a trio of films by director James Toback, on the occasion of his latest film Seduced and Abandoned (2013), a quasi-documentary made with Alec Baldwin and shot at the Cannes Film Festival in the hopes of raising money for a film project. The Museum will screen Seduced and Abandoned, with personal appearances by Toback and Alec Baldwin, on November 13. Toback will also appear in person to present screenings of Black and White (1999) and his rarely shown documentary The Big Bang (1989) today, November 10.

"James Toback is a true maverick whose energetic and adventurous films often cross the line between fiction and documentary while fearlessly probing the big issues: sex, death, race, money, and the very nature of existence," said Chief Curator David Schwartz.

Tickets for Seduced and Abandoned are $25 public / $15 Museum members (and free for Silver Screen members and above). Other screenings are included with Museum admission ($12 adults / $9 senior citizens and students) / $6 children) and free for Museum members. To find out about membership and to join, visit http://movingimage.us/support/membership or call 718 777 6877.

SCHEDULE FOR 'THREE BY JAMES TOBACK,' NOVEMBER 10-13, 2013
All screenings take place in the Sumner M. Redstone Theater or the Bartos Screening Room at Museum of the Moving Image, 36-01 35 Avenue in Astoria. Screenings are included with Museum admission and free for Museum members unless otherwise noted.

Black and White
With James Toback in person
SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 10, 2:00 P.M.
Dir. James Toback, 1999, 98 mins. Rated NC-17. 35mm. With Brooke Shields, Robert Downey, Jr., Gaby Hoffman, Jared Leto, Joe Pantoliano, Bijou Phillips, Ben Stiller, Mike Tyson. Brooke Shields plays a documentary filmmaker shooting a film about why white kids are fascinated by hip-hop culture. Real athletes and celebrities mix with fictional characters, and Toback presents an idea-jammed, sexually audacious slice of uptown and downtown New York life. Toback will introduce the film and participate in a discussion following the screening.

The Big Bang
With James Toback in person
SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 10, 5:00 P.M.
Dir. James Toback, 1989, 81 mins. With Don Simpson, Elaine Kaufman, Veronica Geng, Darryl Dawkins, Emma Astner. Who are we? Where did we come from? Where are we going? These are just some of the grand questions posed by James Toback, to an unlikely group of subjects, including a basketball star, an ex-mobster, a Holocaust survivor, a boxer, a movie producer, and more. As in Seduced and Abandoned, Toback appears on camera, trying to finance the film. Toback will introduce the film and participate in a discussion following the screening.

Seduced and Abandoned
With Alec Baldwin and James Toback in person
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 13, 7:00 P.M.
Dir. James Toback. 2013, 98 mins. With Alec Baldwin, Ryan Gosling, Jessica Chastain, Diane Kruger, Martin Scorsese, James Caan, Roman Polanski, Bérénice Bejo, Francis Ford Coppola, Bernardo Bertolucci. The eternal and unholy struggle between art and commerce in filmmaking has never been documented in such an entertaining and revealing way as in James Toback's one-of-a-kind documentary filmed with Alec Baldwin at the 2012 Cannes Film Festival. The premise-a stroke of genius-is that Baldwin and Toback are in Cannes to raise money for a new project, a contemporary version of Last Tango in Paris filmed in Iraq. The quest to make this impossible film leads to the creation of this very real documentary, which serves as an unlikely love letter to cinema and, fittingly for a Toback film, a wide-ranging, incisively edited meditation on matters of life and death.
Tickets: $25 public/$15 Museum members/Free for Silver Screen and above. Order tickets online at movingimage.us or by phone at 718 777 6800.

Museum of the Moving Image (movingimage.us) advances the understanding, enjoyment, and appreciation of the art, history, technique, and technology of film, television, and digital media. In its expanded and renovated facilities-acclaimed for both its accessibility and bold design-the Museum presents exhibitions; screenings of significant works; discussion programs featuring actors, directors, craftspeople, and business leaders; and education programs which serve more than 50,000 students each year. The Museum also houses a significant collection of moving-image artifacts.

Hours: Wednesday-Thursday, 10:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Friday, 10:30 to 8:00 p.m. Saturday-Sunday, 11:30 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.
Film Screenings: Friday evenings, Saturdays and Sundays, and as scheduled. Tickets for regular film screenings are included with paid Museum admission and free for members.
Museum Admission: $12.00 for adults; $9.00 for persons over 65 and for students with ID; $6.00 for children ages 3-12. Children under 3 and Museum members are admitted free. Admission to the galleries is free on Fridays, 4:00 to 8:00 p.m. Tickets for special screenings and events may be purchased in advance by phone at 718 777 6800 or online.
Location: 36-01 35 Avenue (at 37 Street) in Astoria.
Subway: M (weekdays only) or R to Steinway Street. Q (weekdays only) or N to 36 Avenue.
Program Information: Telephone: 718 777 6888; Website: movingimage.us
Membership: http://movingimage.us/support/membership or 718 777 6877

The Museum is housed in a building owned by the City of New York and located on the campus of Kaufman Astoria Studios. Its operations are made possible in part by public funds provided through the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, the New York City Economic Development Corporation, the New York State Council on the Arts, the National Endowment for the Arts, the National Endowment for the Humanities, the Institute of Museum and Library Services, and the Natural Heritage Trust (administered by the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation, and Historic Preservation). The Museum also receives generous support from numerous corporations, foundations, and individuals. For more information, visit movingimage.us.

Pictured: Alec Baldwin and James Toback, Seduced and Abandoned.